here is the root of the root (and the bud of the bud)
by piperreynas
Summary: "the thing about being on opposite sides of a war: someone always has to lose." in which annabeth defects to kronos' side in the first titan war with luke. au. or: percabeth does skyeward.


One day a boy meets a girl. Here's what's supposed to happen:

"I am never, ever going to make things easy for you, Seaweed Brain."

Here's what actually happens:

"I will _never_ lie to you."

* * *

Annabeth meets Percy Jackson when she is fourteen, courtesy of the Minotaur (which should not be anywhere near Camp but that's something she'll ask Luke about later. She knows he won't answer. He's barely spoken to anyone since Thalia was turned into a tree). He is _nothing_ like she wanted him to be- scrawny and whiny and so, so, idiotic she almost cries, because this brat is the son of _Poseidon_?

She throws a coffee mug at Dionysus' head when they ask her to train him and she learns what _hindsight is 20/20_ really means in the middle of a 10 minute lecture and even that doesn't get her out of it.

She comes close to screaming so many times that she stops counting. He's just so ignorant and stubborn about everything that it makes her want to shake the truth into him, to yell _this is not a story_ until he understands that he could die.

* * *

She likes to tell herself that she defected because rationality dictated that the Olympians would lose, but really she defected for Thalia; she defected for Luke, who did _everything_ for Thalia before she got tree-ified.

Besides, it's not like Luke's wrong, either way. Athena hasn't talked to her or made an effort to reach out to her, the Olympians aren't making an effort to help the Camp stop Kronos, really, the Olympians never do anything besides claiming their children.

She owes Luke _everything_. He and Thalia saved her from growing up homeless, they protected her, they gave her a family _._ She likes to tell herself that pragmatic thinking led to her decision, but in actuality she defected because of Luke Castellan.

* * *

The beginning of the end happens in a van when they are almost-fifteen in a van full of zoo animals where she finds out that Percy likes to talk. A _lot_. "That was pretty scary huh?" he begins, looking at her tentatively, "I mean that was really _really_ -"

"You fought the Minotaur, what you did back there? That was nothing. And you had your water powers too so I don't know why you're complaining…" She means for it to be scathing, but she can't muster enough hate for that, especially considering they fought their way out of hell and he just saved her life, so she trails off.

He lets out an exasperated noise. "What's your deal anyway? You're this perfect know-it-all who can do all these things right? Why do you hate me so much?"

She gives him a long look. "What was your mom like?"

He blinks, surprised. "She was great. She was always there for me, and I would have done anything for her."

"I wish I had that. My mother never contacted me at all, much less _helped_ me, and my father remarried a year after she left and forgot all about me. _That's_ my deal," she says viciously, turning to the window.

"Oh," Percy says. His voice sounds smaller. "I'm sorry."

She gives him a weird look. "It wasn't your fault. You didn't know."

He shrugs. "I'm still sorry for you."

She gives him a small smile a little incredulously. "Thanks." He smiles back at her and tosses her a…travel pillow. She laughs, shaking her head fondly. "Where did you get this?"

"I am a boy of many talents," he says loftily, fiddling with the pen-sword Chiron gave him before they left. Grover smiles in his sleep.

She doesn't have to fake the horror she feels when Luke's scorpion bites him a few days later and Luke disappears.

* * *

The next year, when Luke poisons Thalia's pine tree, she almost throws up. She almost considers running with Luke so she won't have to face Percy, the horrified expression that he'll face her with when he finds out she's betrayed him but she doesn't because she's a _coward_. Or maybe she's a masochist. Percy takes her hand as her stomach turns and she holds on as tight as she can.

* * *

They dance together after the thing with Atlas at the after party on Mount Olympus. Neither of them are ready to talk about Zoe and Bianca and poor Nico, so they don't say anything. They just stare instead; there's not much more they can do, what with their awkwardness and inexperience and the eyes of at least five Opympians on them at all times.

Her eyes wander the entire time, drifting to the lock of grey in his hair, the streamers dancing regardless of the lack of wind, the sparkly balloons that haven been attached to the columns with dubious amounts of duct tape. She looks away, suddenly nervous. He doesn't.

* * *

Annabeth falls in love with him when she's seventeen, in the Labyrinth. It's been a long time coming. Everyone at camp knows about her little secret or at the very least suspects something about the nature of their relationship, but it's only in the Labyrinth that it becomes painfully aware to both of them.

He tells her he's leaving to go fight by himself while a million different monsters are hacking away at the barrier they've managed to put up, and yet all she can think about is _him_ ; his shoulder pressed against hers, the way he smells, how bright his eyes are, how ddead they'll look once the monsters are finished with him.

She almost tells him everything- about Luke and Kronos, but she stops herself, realizing that would put him in danger too. So she says, "Fine," then pulls him to her by the collar of his shirt, and kisses him just to get it out of her system. It backfires terribly. She gets back to Camp a week later, without him, and doesn't sleep even after he crashes his own funeral.

* * *

He kisses her on his eighteenth birthday and she goes along with it selfishly, reasoning that if everything's going to hell in a few months anyway she might as well enjoy this while she can. When he does it, he's got a cupcake in his hand and a smear of blue frosting on his cheek and she laughs because he looks _ridiculous_.

He pretends to be offended. "What are you laughing at?" She just laughs again, sitting down next to him. They both know how his goes. "You're not making this easy," he whines, a second away from pouting like a five year-old and it only makes her laugh even harder.

He huffs, faking offense and she shakes her head as if to say _I_ _know_ and kisses his cheek. Her lips stay pressed to his skin for a while; longer than they need to. Percy turns his head. (Yeah, they know how this goes).

* * *

The "discovery" of Kronos' casket goes perfectly. She comes up with some psychobabble about Luke's _true motivations_ to justify traveling down to Miami and she leads Percy and Grover right into Luke's trap. When they see Luke in front of the casket, Percy immediately pulls out Riptide and Grover tries to use his Pan flutes, but Luke doesn't look scared.

She gives Percy a strained smile. "I'm sorry," she whispers. He doesn't hear.

"Nice to see you again, Annabeth. Glad you could make it," Luke says, smiling knowingly.

He frowns at her. "Annabeth, what-" Annabeth tries to smile again but she's sure it looks more like a grimace. She steps forward until she's beside Luke and then turns to Percy, already stuttering out words. She doesn't know what she's saying though. A consolation, maybe? An apology? But it doesn't matter. Not anymore.

Percy looks shell-shocked for a minute before he finally figures it out. "You…you were with _him_ this entire time?" he snarls. "You're working for _Kronos_?"

"I'm sorry," she repeats, like a broken record. Her cheeks are wet. She doesn't know when she started crying, but she can't stop. "I'm sorry."

"I hate you," he yells. "I never want to see you again," he snarls as two of Luke's guards try to restrain him. He takes out one of them, and then he seems to deflate, becoming limp as the other takes his arm and wrenches it behind his back. "How could you?" he asks, brokenly.

She cries harder. "I love you," she says, just as brokenly, and aren't they a pair right now? Just like Romeo and Juliet.

Luke laughs mockingly somewhere behind her. Grover looks _devastated_. Percy _roars_ and a ten foot wall of water smacks into Luke and washes all of his men overboard. "Why?" he asks.

She doesn't answer his question. "I'm sorry." Luke grabs the side of the boat, cursing and spluttering. Percy takes her arm drags her back to the boat they rode in on, like she's a prisoner. She lets him.

When they get back, she's locked in the Big House using a few of Lou Ellen's spells. They don't need to. She'd never try to escape, and that's what she tells don't believe her, but the only thing that really hurts is the way Percy doesn't ever look at her.

* * *

Percy comes down to visit her a few days later. She stands up as soon as she sees him. "I-"

He cuts her off as soon as she opens her mouth. "The only reason I'm talking to you right now is because we need to stop Kronos."

She breathes out, because at least he's talking to her. "Okay then. Shoot," she says, awkwardly trying for a smile.

He nods shortly and looks down at his hands. "Where's Luke going?"

Annabeth considers it for a minute. "He's probably coming up here to get me."

Percy laughs incredulously. "And why would he do that?"

"I was with him for seven years. He cares about me."

"No he doesn't," Percy says. "He cares about Kronos. And apparently, so do you."

"I did it for Luke. Not for Kronos," she corrects.

"Yeah, well that backfired didn't it?" he says quietly. "What does he want, from this?"

"He wants to fix the casket, which means getting all the pieces and putting them back together. Luke was supposed to be Kronos' host."

Percy studies her carefully. "If this is a lie-"

"It's not," she says earnestly stepping closer. He takes a small step back. "And neither is anything that comes out of my mouth after this. I will _never_ lie to you. I never have. I promise." Her voice breaks.


End file.
